Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging Statement

1. For Per Scholas to prepare its learners for thriving careers in technology, where they will face an array of business challenges, they must learn to be part of a diverse community of learners and staff who express unique and multiple perspectives to deliver real-world solutions.

2. Professional and personal growth is optimized if learners, staff, and Board members:

• Foster a welcoming, inclusive, belonging, and supportive environment where everyone feels accepted and respected, and experiences healthy psychological safety allowing them to be authentic.
• Seek and value diverse perspectives and appreciate one’s own culture and personal history, as well as the values and traditions of others, recognizing that all people are individuals but are also members of socially constructed groups; and
• Recognize bias and actively address discrimination and micro-aggressions while holding themselves accountable for achieving the organization’s DEIB goals and observing these policies.

3. Employment, promotion, training, evaluation, and other benefits will be based on performance and ability, and all employees and learners will be provided opportunities to develop their full potential.

4. Additionally, our mission requires that staff understand the unique challenges faced by women, people of color, gender-diverse, neurodiverse, people with disabilities, veterans, and other communities that reflect our present and future Per Scholas ecosystem.